After Sunset
by brightspark
Summary: Sequel to Envy and Lust. Quistis meets Squall and Seifer during a murder investigation, and things are definitely not as they seem. Cowritten with Iliyana.


The sequel to Envy and Lust! In this, brightspark roleplayed Quistis and Seifer and Iliyana played Squall. This was, of course, converted to a fic by brightspark. This does not contain any particularly adult content but it's recommended you read Envy and Lust first and that you don't have a problem with the odd bit of biting and blood drinking. ;)

* * *

**Quistis POV**

Ten PM. After sunset. Second night of this mission, working only during the night, and not a single damned lead. They sent me here alone – there are other SeeD operatives in the city, but none _assigned_ to this mission. I was told they would contact me and tell me where to find them if I needed any help.

They're going to be in deep shit when I get back to Garden.

SeeDs are too arrogant now. A serial killer – possibly two – loose in this city. But they still believe that I can handle them alone. Because I'm one of the SeeDs who faced Ultimecia. It doesn't matter that I faced her with all of my friends. It doesn't matter that it was _Squall_ who did most in those battles, and now he's disappeared, hasn't been seen by anyone, SeeD or not, since the war. No, I'm still a heroine – so I can face one or two serial killers alone. All in a days work, right?

Damn it. This won't help.

I return my attention to the street, and immediately see something I never expected to see here. Is it just me or - "Squall!"

He turns sharply, and it _is_ him, same scar, same intense eyes, same concealed surprise that only someone skilled at reading him could find there. He looks, for a moment, as if he's about to run off, but I won't let him. No way. Not after he disappeared for so long with not a _word_ about why or where he was going. He has some explaining to do.

"Squall! It really is you... it's been a while."

He nods slightly, seeming a little unsure of what to do. "Hi Quistis."

God, it's such a relief to hear his voice. We've all thought... we've all considered the possibility that he might be dead. He never was too happy in Garden after the war was over. I look past him, and raise an eyebrow in a little surprise at who I see there. _Seifer?_ He's been missing too, we thought someone had killed him for sure... damn, Selphie will be happy to hear about this. "Seifer, too? Where have you two been hiding?"

Seifer moves forward, wrapping a possessive arm around Squall's waist, and Squall leans into him a little as he answers, shrugging slightly as if he hasn't worried us to death. "I have an apartment here."

"_We_ have an apartment here," Seifer corrects him.

He rolls his eyes. "Right. We."

"You're together?" I ask, raising an eyebrow.

Seifer smirks, looking pleased with himself and kissing Squall's temple lightly as he nods. "A few months now."

I bite my lip slightly, not sure if he'll want to hear this or if it will just make him uncomfortable. Still, it's the truth, and he deserves to know how his friends have missed him. "We've missed you, in Garden. Why did you leave so suddenly?"

"I couldn't stay, that's all," he says with another shrug, running his hand over the arm Seifer has around him, not looking at me in his typical avoidant way. Well, fuck. So much for friendship and trust, huh?

"Why, though? I can understand Seifer disappearing this way, but not you..."

Seifer rolls his eyes, coming to Squall's defence. And also, though he thinks I don't notice, changing the subject. "It was his decision. What are _you_ doing here and not in Garden?"

"Mission. There's been a string of murders around here... SeeD aid was requested. I was sent." I shrug slightly. They probably already know about this. They're not the type to remain ignorant of things around them. "You don't happen to know anything about it, do you?"

Squall looks up at Seifer and then back at me, raising an eyebrow. "Murders?"

"People disappearing, people found dead... most disappearing from the same area around here, quite a few from a particular nightclub... it's not much to go on," I explain, and Seifer frowns a little, thinking that over.

"Oh. Do you have anything to go on with the way they're being killed?" Squall asks.

"All of them were pale from bloodloss, but with no major wounds." I sigh. I hate this stupid case. Confusing, full of red herrings and not a job for one SeeD, alone. This is a job for the local police or something.

"Can't really help you," Seifer says, tightening his arm around Squall, a little worried about all this.

"Thanks anyway." I shake my head. It was a bit of a long shot expecting them to be able to help. They're living normal lives now... lucky. They seem happy. I wonder where they're living, how they got together... "Say... I'm technically on duty now, but I'll be free during the day. Would you be able to meet me and catch up a little then?"

Squall shakes his head quickly. "No. We're busy. Tomorrow night?"

Oh. Right. They probably have jobs now, too. "I'm supposedly on duty at night, but I guess so."

Seifer sighs softly and nods, "Tomorrow night, then."

Squall smiles slightly at me and then pulls away from Seifer, still holding on to his hand. "We should go now."

"Bye Quisty," he says with a nod, giving me a small smile as well, his deep voice so different to the child's voice, but reminding me of the Orphanage just with the old nickname. God, that sounds so strange now.

"See you tomorrow, then. I'll be around here somewhere."

"Right," Squall nods and steps back, pulling Seifer with him and whispering into his ear. They look so... comfortable. With each other, with the dark streets. Always the same teenagers who taught me more than I taught them, back when I was their instructor. It looks natural, the way they walk off together.

They're so lucky.

----

Twelve PM. Midnight. Fourth night of the mission. I've had more reports of disappearances and whispered rumours from people too drunk to realise that they're slurring every word they speak. Still no word from the SeeD operatives. I was with Squall and Seifer last night instead of on duty, as we arranged, but nothing happened then anyway.

I've almost given up hope of this mission ever ending. What do they expect from me? Miracles?

Almost.

When there's a short, high pitched scream in the night, I'm on my feet immediately, whip at the ready and running towards the sound of the scream. Could it be a lead?

"Quistis!"

The call stops me short, and I turn to find Squall there, leaning against a wall, his body shadowed by the building. "Squall! Did you hear that scream?" I ask him, quickly, knowing that if it happened anywhere near here, Squall will know about it.

He nods, pointing in a direction that I suppose could have been the origin of the scream. "There was a woman being robbed over there. They ran when she screamed."

"Ah," I sigh, relaxing again. No lead. No lead, and no glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. Damn it. I want to go _home_. I hate this fucking city. "I was hoping it was a lead on this damn murder thing. I can't leave until I've at least figured it out."

Squall frowns a little. "Have you got any witnesses at all?"

"Some people in the nightclub claim they've seen two guys hanging around every time there's a disappearance, but they can't give any more details than that, and I suspect they're not the most reliable," I bite my lip, trying to figure it out.

"Probably not, it could still be a coincidence, too." Squall sighs, his frown showing that he's trying to figure it out. He never has liked messy situations like this when it seems like there's no way out. Maybe if it comes down to it, he can help me – maybe with Seifer...

"Where's Seifer, anyway? And why're you out here tonight? I never see you around during the day..."

"He's around... had something to do." He looks away, maybe looking for Seifer. I guess he's waiting here for him. No other reason he'd be leaning against a building at night in the cold and dark, after all. "I already told you, we're busy during the day."

"I see. You have jobs or something?"

He nods and then looks up, a slight smile brightening his face as Seifer comes towards us, slipping an arm around Squall when he reaches him, kissing him softly. "All done, babe." He looks up at me with his charming smile. Fuck, for a supposed war criminal, Seifer, being charming, could sweet talk birds out of trees. "Hey, Quisty. I thought you were on duty at night?"

"I am, heard a scream."

"Really?" He frowns in concern. "Find anything?"

Squall shakes his head, pressing up against him. "It was just a robbery."

"I see. No luck for you, Quisty." He chuckles softly, giving me a rather perceptive look. There's more colour in his face than there was when I saw them last night, he looks much healthier. They had to go way too soon last night... maybe he's been ill.

"No," I sigh, "These guys are too good at hiding from me."

"From the sound of it, they've had time to practice," Squall snorts softly.

"Or they're just fucking lucky." Seifer shrugs slightly, glancing around the area, perhaps a little apprehensive, although I doubt any murderer would fail to realise that Squall and Seifer aren't their typical helpless targets. "Either way, you'd think someone would have caught them already."

"Right." I sigh, knowing I should be doing my job. I _am_ getting paid a bonus for this, after all, for all the watching I have to do, not for standing around talking to old friends. "I'd better get back to my post. You guys take care."

"You too, Quisty. Good luck," Seifer says with another of his charming smiles. I wave a little as I walk away, but neither of them really notice me, wrapped up in each other. It must be nice.

----

One AM. A quiet night, the seventh night of my mission. Still no leads, and no word from the SeeD operatives -

"SeeD! SeeD!"

I stand up, seeing a sobbing mess of a girl coming towards me. My heart jumps. A lead to the case. She grabs onto me desperately, eyes wide in fear. "My boyfriend, he..."

I gently disengage her hands, nodding slightly. "He's disappeared?"

She nods pathetically.

"I'll have a look around. Stay here... here, have my gun." I press my gun into her hand, pushing her to sit in my place. I don't need a gun anyway, my whip is more than enough for me,and it might make her feel safer.

Walking through the streets both as quickly and silently as I can, I'm almost not surprised to see Seifer and Squall there, Squall pressing Seifer up against a wall. And then the blood on Seifer makes me wonder if he's in trouble. What if...?

I hurry towards them. "Seifer! You're bleeding!" I quickly find a spell I haven't used in a while. Good thing I kept a good stock of scans – always useful for... what the fuck...? "Squall," I say, urgently, reaching out to pull him away. "Seifer's a vampire."

He just grabs my wrist, jerking me closer, a hand clamping over my mouth quickly as he gives me a stern look. "Quiet."

What the fuck is going on? He's not shocked? I suppose he would know, wouldn't he? But... I cast another scan, and quickly jerk away from him when I see the information I was almost expecting. He's a vampire too... Seifer must have turned him into one somehow...

"Don't be so afraid, Quisty. I won't _let_ him drink your blood," Seifer smirks at me, a hint maliciously, reaching out to touch the collar around Squall's neck that I realise has been there all this time. _Fucking bastard_, turning Squall into a _pet_. Squall doesn't seem bothered though, just reaching out to touch my arm with a roll of his eyes at what Seifer said.

"Quistis? Everything alright?"

I pull away, keeping my voice quiet to stop them from touching me. "You're vampires?" At Squall's nod, Seifer wraps an arm around his waist and I step back from them, moving away until I can feel the wall solid against my back, an assurance that there'll be no unexpected attacks from behind. "_Why?_ How? How long?"

"Since I left Garden," Squall says with a shrug.

"Since a while after I met Squall again," Seifer says, reaching up and running his fingers through Squall's hair. Since he met Squall again? Then... _Squall_ turned _Seifer_ into a vampire? But this doesn't make sense. "Quisty," Seifer continues with a soft, regretful note in his voice that I don't believe for an instant, "We take blood to stay alive. You have no idea how strong the compulsion is. But I for one can swear I am _never_ taking the blood of someone I know unless they offer it. You're safe. We won't harm you, Quisty."

"You can't say that for Squall though, he obviously took _your_ blood."

Squall shakes his head, quickly interrupting, "That was different. Seifer was dying, he'd been stabbed."

"And before you ask, I was willing, he didn't force me into anything."

"Still..." I trail off, eyes narrowing as the obvious becomes clearer to me. They weren't asking questions because they were trying to help me. They... they've betrayed me. Used friendship to blind me to the obvious clues. "You've been causing the deaths around here, haven't you?"

Squall looks up, finally meeting my eyes. "Yes."

"Do you really have... all those powers the vampire myths talk about?"

He snorts softly, amused at that, apparently. Perhaps amused by my ignorance, or my curiousity. "We're a bit stronger, a bit faster, sunlight kills us and we drink blood to survive. That's about it."

"And we're practically immortal," Seifer adds, smiling slightly. Of course. That would appeal to anyone, especially to Seifer. Or does he think we've all forgotten that his quest for power blinds him to all else?

"How could you... take another's blood to survive?" I clench my fists, the thought sending shivers down my spine, "It's... animal."

Squall shakes his head, "It's normal to us, when we're hungry, it... it drives us. It's hard to explain."

Drives them. Like an addiction.

"Look, this is going to be hard for you to understand, but..." Seifer bites his lip, trying to meet my eyes. "I offered Squall my blood when he was starving. He _never_ wanted to hurt me, but when he needed to feed, there was no way he could hold back. It's not like you feeling hungry or thirsty."

"I have to think about this." Damn it, they're trying to convince me that they're not so bad, and I'm falling for it. I need to think. Alone, away from them. "In the mean time, there's not long until dawn, I think. You two had better get inside."

"I know," Squall nods, stepping back, taking Seifer's hands in his. "Thank you."

"I don't know what I'm going to do about this. But I'm not just going to kill you without thinking about it. It's like fighting Matron was."

Except I had comrades and a chance of winning when we fought Matron.

"Thank you anyway," he says, with a small smile.

Seifer sighs quietly, "Quisty, we're still the same people. We're not possessed, we haven't sold our souls... we're still the people you knew, more or less. Remember that, okay?"

The people I knew didn't suck blood. They didn't prey on other humans.

They walk off, and I wait for a moment before following them. I have to know where they live, in case I need to take action against them. In case... no. I needn't think about that yet. Just follow them home.

"We're going to have to move, no matter what Quistis decides," Squall's voice drifts back to me as he rests his head against Seifer's shoulder while they walk. Seifer wraps an arm around Squall, holding him close, their walk slowing a little. I adjust my speed to match theirs. They don't need to know I'm here.

"Maybe next time we shouldn't use the same place too often. Find a big city, things are less easily noticed then."

"Deling City maybe," Squall says, leaning up to kiss Seifer's cheek softly. "It doesn't matter."

"It's not like she can hurt us," Seifer agrees, but his arm tightens around Squall a little. "Although I can't help being afraid that she'll separate us somehow." He snorts softly, "How, I have no idea."

His words make Squall stop, turning and wrapping his arms around Seifer's neck, pulling him closer and kissing him softly. I almost look away, but my eyes are drawn to them. If only they weren't... if they hadn't... damn. They make a good couple. If they weren't vampires, if they weren't what they are, I'd think they were amazingly lucky. "I am not letting anyone separate us," Squall promises as he pulls back.

"Couldn't take forever without you, you know," Seifer says softly, only just loud enough for me to hear, running his fingers through Squall's hair. If it weren't for the collar, I'd say that they love each other very much. But can vampires even feel that emotion?

"Neither could I," Squall says, smiling, leaning his forehead against Seifer's shoulder. Seifer holds him for a moment before pulling away, taking his hand and tangling their fingers.

"We need to get inside."

"Yes," Squall says, pulling away reluctantly.

I follow them until they get home, and then leave, feeling vaguely sick and cold in my stomach about the things I've learned tonight.

----

Reluctantly, I allowed them to leave their apartment, watching from a nearby cafe, once the sun set. I knew they had to feed and that I could, perhaps, be in danger if they didn't have the blood they needed. But then I moved to wait in front of the building, and when they come back, I'll be here, waiting for answers to the questions I need to ask.

I don't have long to wait. Squall presses up against Seifer, kissing him eagerly. Apparently they can't even wait until they're inside. I stand up and cough softly, waiting to be noticed.

Seifer breaks the kiss with a soft, frustrated groan, glaring at me, "Shit, Quisty, don't we get any time to ourselves?"

"I gave you enough time to feed, that's enough for you, I think." My voice comes out cold as ice. Just as well. I have to pretend, to myself and to them, that I don't feel anything for the two men I once loved as brothers.

"You're dictating our time now?" Squall glares at me, still standing close to Seifer.

"I need to talk to you, and I don't feel like getting cut off by dawn again. Is there anywhere we can sit down and talk?"

Squall pulls away from Seifer, still glaring at me, and moves to open the door to the apartment, "Make it quick."

"She has a lot of questions, Squall," Seifer sighs softly, strangely a little more reasonable than him, running his hand down Squall's spine soothingly and then pulling away as Squall goes in, muttering about not caring about any questions and tossing his jacket at a chair. He and Seifer both sit on the couch, and Seifer kisses him, breaking the kiss when I follow them inside, shutting the doors behind me and sitting down as far away from them as I can. Squall leans against Seifer and gives me a cold glare.

"I need you to answer my questions. I'll trust your honour, if you have any of it left, not to tell lies." I sigh softly, rubbing my temples, feeling a headache sneaking up on me and needing sleep. This mission hasn't done me any good. "Squall, did you willingly become a vampire."

"No," he answers quickly.

"Why are you a vampire, then?" I raise an eyebrow. I see Seifer biting his lip and I guess this is new to him, too. Hm.

Squall sighs, closing his eyes for a moment and then beginning his story, his tone matter of fact. "You know I wasn't in Garden much, right after the war, I hated it, I was bored. So I went to parties, sometimes for days, got my kicks there. I ended up in some sort of group of vampire 'fans', more by accident than anything else... but then it turned out there were actual vampires there too. Two of them approached me, said they liked my attitude. They bit me for the first time then, I didn't mind too much, it was alright. That repeated itself a few times until they invited me into bed with them and I refused. One of them got pissed off and said I had to because I owed them. He turned me into a vampire then, though I didn't want to, left me to rot in an alley, probably hoping I'd starve or be miserable forever or something."

He looks down at his hands for a moment and Seifer runs a hand down his spine, pulling him closer, a frown on his face. It surprises me a little when Squall shifts, moving into Seifer's lap, tucking his head under his chin.

"Why did he turn you into a vampire? That would seem more like a favour than a punishment." Immortality, greater strength, quicker... a vampire seems to have a great advantage over a human.

Seifer holds onto Squall tightly, his glare more annoyed than I've ever seen it, even when he and Squall used to be constantly at each other's throats. "Because it hurts like hell, you stupid bitch."

"Oh." I bite my lip, realising I shouldn't have pushed it this far, seeing Squall turn to someone else for comfort. "I'm sorry."

"Basically, your body dies," Squall says in a tone that is deliberately uncaring. "It gets rid of everything you don't need anymore."

Seifer's fists are clenched, perhaps in remembrance of the pain of turning. Damn. He kisses Squall, whispering something that I hear regardless. "I'm sorry no one was there for you when you changed."

Squall winds his arms around Seifer's neck, holding him close. "It's okay."

"And Seifer?" I ask, hating to possibly cause more damage but knowing I need to keep questioning. "Did you willingly turn into a vampire?"

"That's complicated," he sighs. "At first, when Squall found me in the club where he was hunting, he brought me back here. I offered him my blood. I offered him it again on other nights until the point where I'd lost too much. I gave him my blood a little too often, and when I was stabbed by accident in the club, Squall didn't have any option to save me but turn me into a vampire. I was willing, yes, but only because I didn't feel like dying and leaving him alone for eternity."

"You had a choice, unlike Squall. You chose to cheat death."

That earns me another glare from Squall. "First you dictate our time, now you're the one to decide whether we can be happy or not?"

I shrug slightly, looking to Seifer again. "Seifer, why did you offer Squall your blood anyway? Did he force you to or were you setting out to become a vampire?"

Seifer's eyes narrow, "You've got no right to ask me that. Or any of this shit."

"I don't know what you're thinking, Quistis, but neither of us suddenly turned evil." Squall's voice is tight with control, and I realise how angry he must be. Maybe I won't leave this apartment alive. The thought only makes me more reckless.

Seifer rolls his eyes before I can say anything more, reaching for Squall's hand and tangling their fingers. "I like being bitten, okay? I get off on it. I liked it, he needed my blood, I got fucking great sex afterwards and I owed him, seemed great to me then, doesn't seem so bad now, either."

Squall smirks slightly at me at that declaration while I'm still struggling for words, bearing his fangs and running his lips and teeth over Seifer's neck. Seifer moans softly, even though I'm sat right here, muttering about fucking teases.

Squall glances at me before running his tongue over Seifer's neck, sinking his fangs into him, barely deep enough to draw blood, licking it up quickly. "Not to mention that he was _asking_ for it all the time."

"Don't you think it's selfish of you to kill so many people just so you can be immortal?" I ask, finally, without looking at them until I hear a soft snarl.

Seifer bares his fangs at me, his expression annoyed and a little twisted, demonic with the teeth bloodthirsty and sharp showing clearly. "Try loving a vampire and you'll understand, maybe."

Squall ignores him, pulling him down for a kiss, possibly to help him calm down, his voice smooth and calm again, as it always was when he used to block us all out. "I suppose it is selfish."

Seifer pulls away from the kiss, looking up at me with a determined expression, his eyebrows drawn together a little. "When I was still just a human, Squall and I couldn't touch each other for days sometimes while I recovered, because he was afraid he'd not be able to resist and would take too much blood. He was afraid to kill me. But I couldn't leave, because I love him. Okay? And if he'd left to save us both from that, I'd just have followed him. Because I love him. You have no idea how hard it is for a human and a vampire to live together. It might be selfish, but at least we aren't alone and we're happy now. You have no right to judge us, _no_ right at all."

"You're so much like the Squall and Seifer I grew up with..." I sigh, covering my face with my hands, that headache I anticipated coming on quicker than I expected. "But you murder people and steal their blood..."

"We _are_ the Squall and Seifer you know," Seifer says, impatiently, rolling his eyes. Then, thoughtfully, he adds, "Look... you murder people as a SeeD, if you must put it that way. At least we don't _waste_ their blood."

"You kill to live, I kill for money..." I stand up with sigh. I can't kill them. I _can't._ Even if I could, I wouldn't be able to kill them. I love them. My brothers, my friends... why did it end up like this? "You have to leave this city. I'll find a convincing culprit. Don't get found this way again, or I'll be out of a job."

"You won't see us again," Squall promises, nodding. When he sees I don't dare go close to them, but that I want to say a proper goodbye, he gets up, coming over to hug me. "Goodbye, Quistis."

I pull away, managing a faint smile. "I'll do everything I can to cover your tracks here."

"Thank you," he says, returning the smile. "Don't tell the others?"

Selphie would be so angry with me... Rinoa would be sad... Zell would get angry. But they don't have to know. "I could... tell them you're dead, if you prefer. That way, no one will come looking."

Seifer gets up, wrapping an arm around Squall, and Squall looks up to see what his lover thinks, saying softly, "That would be easiest."

Seifer nods, "There's no way we can go back to Garden or whatever anyway."

"Tell them," Squall says softly, the goodbyes already said, leaving it to me to get out of there.

I hate the tears in my eyes as I nod, my voice a little choked, "I don't know if I'll ever be able to approve of what you two have to do... but if you're going to do it, be happy, okay?" I can't even say it properly, and I turn to leave before they can say anything else.

_Goodbye, my friends_.


End file.
